Ilkeston Community Chapel

09/10/2026

𝗕𝗲𝗹𝗽𝗲𝗿 𝗖𝗲𝗺𝗲𝘁𝗲𝗿𝘆 𝗖𝗵𝗮𝗽𝗲𝗹 - 𝘀𝗽𝗼𝘁 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗱𝗶𝗳𝗳𝗲𝗿𝗲𝗻𝗰𝗲! ⛪

A recent visit to Belper Cemetery revealed some striking similarities between its beautiful chapel and our own at Park Cemetery in Ilkeston.

Both feature twin chapels linked by a central carriageway with a tower and spire above. Their interiors are uncannily similar too.

Belper’s chapel was designed by Edward Holmes and built in 1859, while Park Cemetery Chapel was designed by Borough Surveyor A. J. Kilford in 1910, some 51 years later.

Despite their different architects, the resemblance is remarkable!

The visit also offered a fascinating glimpse into the cemetery’s history through its old ledgers, recording costs and expenses dating back to the 1800s.

Many thanks to Callum, the groundskeeper at Belper Cemetery, for kindly sharing his knowledge and showing us around. 🌿

28/09/2026

Thanks to Gillian Protheroe Castle for another post about Park Cemetery

04/09/2026

💛 A little update from the chapel team…

We’ve been busy working with Erewash Borough Council, exploring funding opportunities and gathering the information needed to take the restoration project forward.

We’ve also been connecting with heritage organisations and people in our local community and have received some really helpful advice and support.

There’s a huge amount of work involved in bringing a historic building back into community use and we’re a very small voluntary team fitting this around our working lives but step by step, things are moving forward.

Thank you for following and supporting the journey. 💛⛪

02/09/2026

We’ve only just heard about this award, and how wonderful to see that a neighbouring cemetery has received Silver! 🏆👏🏻

Congratulations to everyone involved at Draycott Cemetery - a fantastic achievement! 💛

We are delighted to announce that our parish cemetery has been awarded the esteemed Silver standard in the prestigious Cemetery of the Year Awards. This outstanding achievement fills us with immense pride, underscoring our commitment to excellence as a small but mighty cemetery. 🏆 The Cemetery of the Year Awards Competition is a benchmark of excellence, driving improvement and compliance within burial grounds, while promoting best practices under the expert guidance of leading authorities. The BRAMM Cemetery of the Year Award 2026 is made possible through the generous sponsorship of the British Register of Accredited Memorial Masons (BRAMM) and the esteemed support of the Institute of Cemetery and Crematorium Management (ICCM), The Federation of Burial and Cremation Authorities (FBCA), The Society of Local Council Clerks (SLCC), and the British Register of Accredited Memorial Masons (BRAMM).

28/08/2026

Tomorrow's tidy up session has been cancelled - see the New Friends of Park Cemetery group page for the next date in September.😊

15/08/2026

Love a good before and after? There’s a feel-good factor in seeing what a few hours of shared effort can achieve.

Come along to the next Park Cemetery clean-up day on 𝗦𝗮𝘁𝘂𝗿𝗱𝗮𝘆 𝟮𝟵𝘁𝗵 𝗔𝘂𝗴𝘂𝘀𝘁.
The New Friends of Park Cemetery will be inside the chapel to welcome you 𝗳𝗿𝗼𝗺 𝟵:𝟯𝟬𝗮𝗺.

Come for as little or as long as you can, whether that’s first thing or later on. Every pair of hands helps to keep the cemetery a cared-for place where our community can remember loved ones and enjoy this green space. 🌿💒

Join the New Friends’ group for updates. https://www.facebook.com/share/g/1A87ZThQ6C/?mibextid=wwXIfr

17/07/2026

Another satisfying before-and-after gallery from the New Friends group – excellent work at the latest cemetery clean-up day! 👏🏻💛⛪

The team of volunteers makes a vital difference to Park Cemetery grounds, not only picking litter but also restoring and maintaining gravestones, clearing fallen trees, sweeping paths, weeding and planting, and more, as you can see from our recent posts.

They're meeting again soon, so please follow the page for updates - link below. If you'd like to get more involved, they can also add you to their WhatsApp group - just drop them a DM.

https://www.facebook.com/groups/375941068127920/

09/07/2026

What a sweet channel. Thank you to Alan Morley Videos for this lovely footage and narration. 💒

This video is a little different to my usual ones. To smooth out th...

01/07/2026

New Friends of Park Cem - join the group for working party dates:

https://www.facebook.com/share/g/1FMAW2rWRD/?mibextid=wwXIfr

24/06/2026

We’ve been quiet at Chapel HQ lately, but that doesn’t mean nothing is happening behind the scenes.

Our CIC is run entirely by volunteers. We’re a small team of professionals with busy lives, working long hours and with other commitments, so progress can be slower than we’d like. However, we continue to move the project forward whenever time allows, and we remain committed to seeing this beautiful historic building restored for community use.

This week we were delighted to receive our official Certificate of Incorporation for Ilkeston Community Chapel CIC - a small but significant milestone on our journey. 💒

Many of you will already know the lovely Rev’d Christine French, who serves as our Treasurer (and more besides!). To celebrate our progress so far, Christine kindly had our certificate framed and sent it to me.

Christine isn’t keen on having her photo taken, so you’ll have to make do with me posing proudly with it instead! 😊

Thank you to everyone who continues to follow, support and encourage the project. Your interest means a great deal and helps keep the momentum going.

ParkCemeteryChapel 💒✨